As an introduction, Christian Bartholet, CSO at Jansen, answered questions in an interview. He explained how predestined steel is to withstand external influences such as fire, burglary or weather. Steel is not only the material for security applications, but is also suitable for fulfilling the wishes of architects. But security also has another component, namely in the sense of the reliability of the company, which is now being run by the third generation - and in thinking and acting sustainably, it also provides security.
Afterwards, Kai-Uwe Bergmann, partner of the BIG Bjarke Ingels Group, joined from Los Angeles to present his impulse retreat "Formgiving". This Danish term represents how to give form to daily life and how we work. In the future, outdoor space will be given an even higher priority: more space for pedestrians and cyclists in big cities. This is also reflected in the architecture, for example through larger windows. He explains that he is always rethinking architecture and design. Changes in society and in the climate require us to think globally about how we will use and walk in buildings today and in the future. In doing so, he showed some attractive examples such as the "Copenhill", a household waste incineration plant, an 85-metre-high building from whose roof a 450-metre-long ski slope winds its way down the facade to the ground. Other examples were in New York, where the theme of flooding is present in architectural and human terms. A new park (10km) with a protective effect including a bicycle path and greenery or a residential building with a vertically greened courtyard: a Court Skraper Concept. Also with regard to floods, he showed a 4-storey student dormitory in Copenhagen: 12 small flats, so-called "repurposed storage containers", which ensure safety and allow comfortable living even in case of floods.
Sonja Oesch, Product Manager at Jansen, presented insights into the system solutions for wind-water-air, burglary protection and fire protection and how these products make an important contribution to the security of windows, doors and facades and have to withstand high demands. Informative thematic films impressively demonstrated how tests are carried out in the company's own technology centre with test workshop with regard to protection against fire, burglary and weathering.
In the breakout sessions, the safety-relevant aspects of the three objects were highlighted by means of the three best-practice object presentations "Schiphol Airport", Amsterdam, "OMM Odunpazari Modern Museum", Eskishier (Turkey) and "Banco Santander", Madrid. The steel profile systems and Jansen's expertise with regard to security were also presented as examples.
The Swiss futurologist Georges T. Roos ventured "a look into the future". He explained that global changes in a system interact with the "psychological climate", society, logistics and the political situation. Changes are fragile and do not proceed in a linear fashion. The pace of change, complex markets, social structures and demographic developments are important drivers of the future, but also pose challenges. He summed up: "The telescope cannot be focused and the future is uncertain - making reliable anticipation difficult".
The last, but no less exciting part was the panel discussion with the participants Christoph Jansen, Georges T. Roos and Carlos Martinez, architect. It crystallised that challenges are also needed; customer needs and conversations as well as a common vision for trends and changes are relevant for customers and products. Buildings are becoming more flexible, multifunctional spaces - the "built world" for decades show what it will take in the future to generate innovation.
Artificial intelligence (AI) was also a topic, which is seen as a great opportunity in the industry and brings advantages especially in automation and it is exciting to shape the way there. The ever stronger networking with customers and suppliers, the raw material strip steel, respectively the value chain and processes enable visions to become reality. New thinking, discussions and listening play a major role in this. In the sense of a conclusion and "pointing the telescope at safety": Security needs change and a certain willingness to take risks is necessary.
Finally, Christian Bartholet gave an insight into the "virtual showroom" that is currently being developed at Jansen. Here you can immerse yourself in the virtual world via the internet or VR glasses: configure products, simulate buildings or fire protection in application showrooms. The virtual networking enabled a professional and "digitally personal" exchange and was actively used.
